


Lost and Found

by Quillery



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 13:08:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,590
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18917659
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Quillery/pseuds/Quillery
Summary: Ever since the day I've lost them, I vowed to keep this to myself forever. This secret shall be mine to guard, and mine alone.But one little event messed everything up, and now the only friends I can call my family knows everything about my past.What they didn't know is that I didn't lie to them, but neither was I being completely honest.





	Lost and Found

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I haven't posted in ages so its my first story in a long time. I apologies if the flow isn't good or the characters doesn't feel like themselves. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy!

The whole wind lashed against me as I opened the door to one of the balconies in the school. Despite the doorknob feeling like it was made out of ice themselves, the wind had little to no effect on me.

I placed a hand on the railing, resting my chin on my other hand as I recalled the day's events. After cleaning up the school, we headed over to the cafeteria for dinner.

Despite the whole situation being resolved and the teachers have forgiven us...I'd be lying if I said it still didn't bother me. I still feel this sadness lingering in my chest, something hollow and empty as if my heart was dug out where it was before being placed back. It didn't feel right, as if something inside me was still broken, something that cannot be fixed.

Ever since I was little, I was an orphan and I kept that to myself. Not because I hated the truth but because I felt like I could not trust anyone after that incident. They're gone, simple as that, and I've shut my heart out from the world ever since.

But today, a series of unfortunate events had led to those doors I kept locked for so long being opened again, my deepest secrets expos for everyone else to see. Well, not everyone - only my teacher and my 5 friends, the closest thing that I have to family now. Still, it was something that I'm not sure how I feel about. Granted, it was all my dumb fault for pulling that stunt in the first place...but I couldn't say I regret it, even though some part of me wished that it never happened, for better or worse.

They didn't know that I left out a few details in the story. What I told them was true - I felt like an outcast at home since they day I lost my family, and my foster family doesn't really care about me. However, there was still a whole part of the story missing. One part that will forever define me.

Now looking at the snow drifting lazily through the air, I gaze up at the moon, casting a soft glow on the small town nearby. I sighed. Somehow, I knew that a part of my heart would forever ache for the feeling of being around Mum and Dad again.

"Hey, you okay there? You seemed a bit distant at the table just now."

I snapped out of my reverie, turning around slightly to see Lance standing in the doorway. My muscles that I didn't realize were tense relaxed as he walked up to join me on the balcony. "Hey, Lance."

I waited to continue my sentence and say, "It's nothing, I'm fine." but I knew that was a lie. I wasn't. And although Lance was not anything like my teachers, he wasn't dumb enough to buy it.

So instead, I kept my mouth shut. I felt his presence as he came up to stand beside me. I can practically feel his gaze piercing into through my soul, and for a moment, I felt defenseless, unable to guard anything deep inside myself.

"Keith...you don't need to say anything if you don't feel like it." His voice was reassuring, letting a foreign warmth creep into my heart that was unlike any jacket provided. "I know how it's like. To feel like it isn't okay I mean." He quickly added, as if he thought I would be offended.

"If you're feeling up to it though... I'd just like to know what's wrong. Is there anything still bothering you?" Lance asked softly, his blue eyes gently gazing on me. "I don't want to stand beside and watch while one of my best friends is suffering for whatever reason."

I don't like showing my weakness, but somehow Lance made me lose my sarcasm and defensive stance whenever we are alone, and this time was no exception. Besides, if I trusted anyone with my secret...it would be him.

"I'm afraid there's something I have not told you all." I gave him a sad smile. "I...I don't know if I’m ready to say it." Sigh...I don't know when I’ll ever be. I don't need to say anything more, the knowing look in his eyes told me he knew where I was coming from.

"It's okay Keith." Lance reassured and gently lay a hand on my back. a gesture that made me stiffen slightly, but I didn't back off. If I was being honest, it was actually a rather comforting gesture. "Everyone has their own secrets and I understand that you want to keep some things to yourself as well. Just know that..." He took a deep breath before continuing. "No matter what your problem is...I'll always be there for you. Maybe not to help you solve whatever is on your mind, since I couldn't read it and and understand your problem," he laughed at the statement. "But I would always be around. Just so you would not feel so alone."

I didn't know why, but that statement made me blush slightly, although it was barely visible beneath the night sky. Lance was willing to sacrifice his holiday and time with his parents, just so that I wouldn't have to go through my punishment alone, which I rightfully deserve after what I've done. Although it turned out all good in the end, I'm still touched at my friends' willingness to stay back, even though it meant losing their chance to spend time with their families and friends back at home.

Looking at the pale moonlight casting over my friend's face, I felt the ice from my heart slowly melt away, leaving the secrets behind closed doors pouring out. Lance was my friend - deep down in my heart maybe I even felt he was something more, given that he always had this weird effect on me when I speak to him. He might or might not have noticed, but I was always less snappy and temperamental around him. Some would argue that he was the least annoying out of the other friends.

"Lance?"

Lance switched his gaze from the distant stars back to me, still wearing that same smile that made my heart rate increase just a little but every time. "Yes, Keith?"

"I... I trust you, okay? I mean, as more than a friend. Wait, no, that's not what I meant - but argh." I fumbled over with my words, my face positively flushed. "What I'm trying to say is, I think I can tell you. What's on my mind, I mean. I don't know why... but I feel like I can trust you more than the others." My heart settled down a bit after I got that out. "All I ask is that... could you keep it a secret? I don't want others to know... yet."

Lance nodded his head firmly. "Well, I didn't expect that. I'm ready to listen whenever your ready."

I managed to smile, despite the fact that I was now rekindling the one memory that I wanted to keep extinguished as long as possible. "Alright. So, you know that I don't have a family back home. Or at least, that's what it is now." A sad sigh escapes my mouth again, and this didn't go unnoticed by Lance, who gently patted my back in a gesture of comfort, which I appreciated. "What I didn't tell you all was what actually happened to them."

The statement itself felt like a sharp blade embedding into my chest. I kept it buried for so long but I couldn't turn back now. Lance was by best friend and maybe more - I knew I could trust him, under the snowy skies and the glow of the moonlight, where the whole world was deaf except for the two of us.

"It dated back to when we celebrated Christmas. As you know, the only time we celebrate anything together." A bittersweet smile made its way to my face as I thought of that again. "Before that, my father would always be away, for reasons I still do not know. He wasn't the nicest person. He always acted tough, was mean and snobbish. But my mother, she was always really caring and nice towards me."

The gentle face of my mother floated into my mind, making my soul yearn for the warmth that only she could provide. The pain was almost unbearable, but I kept going anyway.

"On the day my father came home to celebrate Christmas, he was welcomed with great news, I had a new baby brother. He was born on Christmas. How lucky was that!" Again, the same feeling coursed through my soul, a mixture of reminiscent joy and heartache all at the same time. "And yet...I never knew that it would be his last holiday as well." Lance looked visibly shocked at what I said but he remained silent anyway.

I felt myself to well up as I continue to speak. "We were having so much fun, and we were all enjoying ourselves for once. Mum was so happy, I swore that she actually cried out tears of joy. We never got together much as a family - and yet today, we were all sitting at the same table. All wearing bright smiles on our faces and carrying a newborn baby as we celebrate the only holiday we are together as a family. In fact, I myself was so excited that I ran out of the house and gazed into the city bathed under the sunlight after our dinner. Abit like you when you are excited." This managed to get a little chuckle out of Lance beside me. Somehow, hearing his laugh always lightens my heart a little bit, though not so much this time.

"It was also the only time that we were ever together to celebrate. I got so lost in the moment that I actually found myself singing as I ran through the whole city under the snow." I smiled, feeling a lone tear slide down my cheek as I remembered my childish voice attempting to hit the high notes.

"I thought I could return home before our own little gathering we planned before midnight. I thought it was fine if I just left the house for a moment to have some time on my own. I had never been more wrong." As I spoke those words, the smile is wiped from my face. I took a moment to compose myself, gathering my shaky breaths as I told Lance the event that had forever changed my life.

"I... I thought everything would be fine when I got back. I thought they would just be waiting for me by the fire, probably looking confused as to where I've gone in my frenzy of excitement. And... when I returned home... I... I found everything in flames. My entire house, the area around it - everything that I've ever known and loved then."

Lance was obviously taken aback, the shocked look on his face speaking thousands of words that his mouth could never hope to. I blinked, feeling more tears fall as I tried to speak without choking on my words. "I didn't even know what happened. I was just a scared little boy, crying as some others who have witnessed the event put out the fire. It wasn't difficult in that kind of weather... but it was enough. To take everything that I have from me." A bitter tone laced my voice as those words escape my mouth. I still remember it so clearly - the taste of ash and smoke on my tongue, the searing, stifling heat pressing against me, as if the whole world was closing in, forcing me down to my claws. And I couldn't do anything except crying for Mum and Dad. And even my little brother who never got the chance to be named.

"And after that, everything just went back to normal. At least, for every other person. The loss of a family is not even remotely important to them." I forced a laugh, one that ended with me coughing from the thickness in my throat. "Everyone just moved on, like nothing happened, like they were not affected in the slightest." My gaze fell to the floor, unable to meet his eyes, not when my own are filled with tears. "And I was no one. No one but a boy who had never felt more homesick than ever, even though I was technically still home. Yet, it wasn't my home. Home was a place with Mum and Dad, a loving family with a warm house, a family who just had another child that didn't even get the chance to hear his own name being called."

I don't know if I was crying or what, but I can clearly see the tears falling onto the floor beneath us. "I wandered the streets since then, a lost child that no one could spare time to pity. Not that I wanted that, mind you, but I felt like I was nothing."

I didn't know if Lance spoke or tried to say something comforting, but all I knew was I was only ranting - practically yelling the next moment. "I'm nothing but a failure! If I hadn't ran away that day... if I had just stayed with them, I would be with them now. I would have passed on to a better life, with no worries and no burdens to carry, only a little boy living happily with his family forever. Away from the world which likes to take everything you ever loved and burn it to the ground. A world that only reminds me that I can't do anything well..." I shake my head, clearing my throat with a cough - a futile action, it seemed. "Just look. I almost ruined all of your holidays... and I'm probably upsetting you now with my own problems."

The thought of Lance and my other friends potentially leaving me, alone on the streets once more, a poor boy with nothing left but his worthless life, wandering through this mess when nothing else matters...

It was too much. The emotional stress and the pain of the opening of my old wounds overwhelmed me, and I broke down.

I didn't cry. Not even when it hurt a lot, I just shot back with a sharper comment whenever I'm hurt. But being around Lance weakened my defenses. I couldn't muster the energy to do anything else other than openly cry, the whole world blurring as I felt like I was drowning in my tears.

And then, something unexpected happened.

I didn't know when or how, but a felt a pair of strong arms wrap around me, slowly realizing that the person leaving me with so many conflicting emotions was hugging me. Unable to respond in any other way, I wordlessly hugged him back. If it wasn't for him, I didn't know how I would have coped. I probably would have kept this secret locked inside me, unable to face the truth, unable to move on.

"Keith..." Lance finally spoke after what felt like an eternity. "I'm so sorry. You didn't deserve this... no one deserves this." He pulled back slightly, still keeping his hands on me, just enough to look into my eyes directly. "I know how you feel because I had the same loving parents, just like your mom. I don't know what I'd do without them either." I felt my crying slowly cease, but still sobbing as I held on to him, fearing that he'd let go for whatever reason.

"I wasn't the toughest boy either back then, you know?" He said, sidling closer to me, possibly for warmth, but I guess it was mostly for emotional support.

"I was constantly teased for flirting with every girl I met. I stopped after while but the teasing didn't stop after that. I tried to ignore them, but it was impossible. I once felt like I was useless, like I was straying farther and farther away from my childhood dream to become a veterinarian such as out Professor. Chasing my hopes seem to only make me lose faith in myself, with every taunt and sneer thrown my way." For a moment, I saw real sadness in his expression, one that made me want to punch every guy and girl that had ever dared to say a word against him.

"But my parents were always there for me. Heck, even my younger sister knew how to comfort me. She just had to place her hand on mine, while my parents held me, whispering reassuring words into my ear." A genuine smile then replaced the sadness from a moment ago. "I knew that I couldn't have even met you all if it weren't for them. They agreed to let me switch to another school, and when I said I wanted to attend this school, they agreed almost immediately."

I'm thankful for that too, for if not, I wouldn't even have met Lance, or knew my other friends. I kept an arm draped over the Lance's back as he continued to speak.

"What I'm saying is... I understand how you feel. Maybe not completely, since I know that I can never experience the same pain as you did. The point is, you're not worthless or terrible. This is all new for me too. Meeting and befriending new people... it's all made better because of all of you. In fact, my life is better here because of you."

I blushed again, once again self-conscious. The feelings I've dismissed every time they surfaced now came back at full force. Why did Lance always had that effect on me? Why was he different from Hunk or Pidge? Was he really saying what I hoped he was saying?

My questions are washed away with one single answer as I felt his lips caressing my cheek, lighting up my face in a massive blush. I didn't flinch or move away, and I found myself actually enjoying the feeling. When he finally pulled away, looking at me with a gentle, loving gaze, I found myself nuzzling him back.

I can't believe it. Lance, one of my best friends that got me feeling that my heart was melting every time I was near him, was actually kissing me. And this made me realize something.

I was probably in love. More than probably - maybe even completely. I always knew what I felt towards this guy wasn't mere friendship, and if anyone tells me that there are plenty of girls that I could chase after, I'd just say screw them and choose him anyway.

"You know, we should do a gift-exchanging ceremony at the end of the night of Hearth's Warming..." Lance himself blushed as he said that. He ran off inside the castle, leaving me missing the warmth that leaning against him provided. I hoped that he wouldn't take long.

Sure enough, a few moments later, he emerged again with a small box, wrapped in some colorful festive paper that I've never seen before. He handed me the gift, and I reached out to grasp it with my hands. It was not very heavy, but I had not the slightest clue of what's inside.

"You know... it's almost midnight now. I'd like you to open it." Lance looked at me with a red face, still smiling.

I did as I was told, tearing the wrapping paper and opening the lid of the box. My eyes widened as I saw what laid inside. A tiny necklace resembling the shape of a heart laid in the box, made out of onyx stone.

"I managed to get some help... I hoped that it was something so that you wouldn't forget me." Lance looks up at me with an embarrassed but hopeful look. Out of instinct, my hands worked to put the tiny gift around my neck, excited to see how it looked on me. It felt like Lance gave me part of himself, making a mark forever in my heart.

At that moment, all of my worries and pain gathered throughout the day disappeared.

I pulled the Cuban boy in for a hug, feeling the long-lost warmth return instantly. I feel his head resting on my shoulder, making me blush slightly. Looking at the heart hanging from my neck again, I reached out with my free hand and plucked a flower nearby. I looked down at the serene guy beneath me, and smiled unknowingly as I placed the flower behind his left ear.

This caused Lance to open his eyes and glance up at the flower now nestled behind his ear. He looked like he was about to say something, but I gently pressed my mouth against his, telling him that he didn't need to speak.

Luckily, he got my message, simply giving into the kiss, filling us both with warmth that was impenetrable by the cold winter air. We were content to watch the quiet night sky with me never lifting my hand off him. And for once, I felt that I truly belonged once more. Not as an orphan seeking pity, not as a guy pretending to be better than everyone else, not as someone that felt out of place all the time, with no one to love and be loved in returned.

And in that moment, I thought to myself, _It is certainly nice to be lost and found, after so long._


End file.
